Mott Fountain Aquarium 1875

To restore or not to restore, that is the question! When the museum recently received this beautiful fountain aquarium manufactured by the J. L. Mott Company around 1875 we were perplexed as to what restoration should be done. The general rule of restoration is “less is more” or in other words, do no harm to the original patina! (Paint or finish) Although the outside of this solid cast iron beauty has some rust and much paint loss the overall look is beautiful and original so re-painting it would be a crime!! We decided to leave all the original paint/finish on the outside alone but fix the actual top aquarium so it could hold water. This entailed using a 2 part marine epoxy paint on the inside bottom of the rusted aquarium and then adding the glass back with period correct “low-iron” glass. Once finished we will set this aquarium up in the museum with the same type of fish it would have had around 1875- goldfish!

Lastly, this rare fountain aquarium has its original manufactures plate at the bottom which was a big bonus as many fountain aquariums have them missing or they have no foundry mark.